Customer premises equipment based advertisement insertion mechanism for internet protocol based networks

ABSTRACT

A system, method, and computer readable medium for a customer premises equipment based advertisement insertion mechanism for Internet Protocol based networks, comprises, storing advertisements in a customer premises equipment, detecting an advertisement insertion signal in a data stream, and multiplexing the stored advertisements into the data stream upon the detecting of the advertisement insertion signal.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present patent application is related to and claims the benefit and priority of provisional patent application No. 60/744,698, filed on Apr. 12, 2006, entitled CUSTOMER PREMISES EQUIPMENT (CPE) BASED AD-INSERTION MECHANISM FOR IP DELIVERY BASED NETWORKS, the entire contents of which are incorporated by reference herein.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is generally related to Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) advertisement distribution and, more specifically to Customer Premises Equipment (CPE) based advertisement insertion mechanism for Internet Protocol based networks.

Traditional advertisement insertion based solutions rely on a communication device that is part of the MPEG broadcast delivery network. Directed advertisement injection at the network level is not practical for IP based video delivery systems.

Currently, various IPTV based system advertisement solutions include the use of specialized servers, which dramatically complicate the video delivery solution. The result being that the service flow is not longer linear, and has no single point where an advertisement insertion device can be utilized. The use of traditional advertisement insertion devices in this environment is complex and inflexible.

Therefore, what is needed is a method, computer readable medium and system for directed advertisement insertion mechanism for Internet Protocol delivery based networks utilizing local storage for specific user profile targeting.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides a mechanism by which an advertisement, commonly referred to as an ad or commercial, can be injected into an Internet Protocol (IP) based broadcast video delivery system. By using the Customer Premises Equipment (CPE) or Set Top Box (STB), the advertisements can be uploaded and stored in advance, and multiplexed by the CPE/STB at play time. This provides a scalable method by which the advertisements can be tailored to the profile of the viewer. Currently there are no known advertisement insertion mechanisms, over an IP-based network, that rely on the CPE/STB to perform this function in real-time, (that is not only before or after a broadcast, but while a broadcast is playing), using standard Ad-splicing signaling mechanisms.

In the present invention there is no need for specialized advertisement insertion devices/servers/equipment, no need to modify the IP network and network flows to accommodate advertisement insertion and no need to perform any type of Digital Rights Management (DRM) decryption, or server based manipulation of the video stream. The present invention provides the ability to provide much more specifically targeted advertisement insertions based on user profiles, demographics, time of day, etc.

In the present invention the CPE/STB will have local storage such as a hard drive or other non-volatile memory, it will trigger using the traditional SCTE 35 or equivalent signaling in order to perform the insertion and the STB will multiplex the locally stored advertisement to the existing video stream. SCTE 35 is a digital program insertion cueing message, which supports splicing of Moving Pictures Expert Group (MPEG-2) streams for digital program insertion such as advertisement insertion.

The present invention decrypts the MPEG video stream (video channel), and waits for an SCTE 35 signal, which is an international standard for advertisement insertion mechanisms for broadcast MPEG video delivery. Upon such signal, it then manipulates the original MPEG video stream, by injecting the advertisement in place of the default advertisement. The present invention uploads (pushes) the relevant advertisement, in advance, directly to the end-user CPE/STB. Relying on the CPE to perform the manipulation of the MPEG stream, to perform the insertion, multiplexing, of the advertisement.

In one embodiment of the present invention, a method for CPE based advertisement insertion mechanism for internet protocol based networks, comprises, storing advertisements in a CPE, detecting an advertisement insertion signal in a data stream, and multiplexing the stored advertisement into the data stream upon detection of the advertising insertion signal. The method may also comprise recording a user viewing habit, profiling the user based upon the recorded user viewing habit, storing the user profile and uploading the advertisement to the CPE based upon the user profile. The method may additionally comprise requesting the advertisement based upon the user profile, determining the advertisement viewership and detecting a channel change during the advertisement multiplexing. The method may comprise scheduling the advertisement multiplexing based upon data stream and scheduling the advertisement multiplexing based upon a time of viewing where the advertisement insertion signal is based upon SCTE 35 protocols.

In a further embodiment of the present invention, a computer readable medium comprises instructions for, recording a user viewing habit in a CPE, profiling the user based upon the recorded user viewing habit, matching the user profile to an advertisement, and uploading the advertisement to the CPE based upon the user profile. The computer readable medium may comprise storing the user profile, sending a set of user preferences from the set top box to a broadband network, requesting the advertisement based upon the user profile and scheduling the advertisement uploads.

In a further embodiment of the present invention, a superset of advertisements is broadcast to a profiled CPE device. The viewing habits of the household may determine which superset of advertisements the household receives, and determine which advertisements are spliced into the broadcast. When advertisement collections are broadcast, they may be broadcast at a low rate referred to as a trickle so as not to interfere with existing services. Additionally, due to the short duration of advertisements and large storage capacity in CPE devices, storage of a large number of advertisements is possible. In this embodiment, the advertisements stored on the devices would be periodically updated, deleted and refreshed.

In yet a further embodiment, a system of CPE based advertisement insertion mechanism for internet protocol based networks comprises, a memory that receives a superset of advertisements, and a processor communicably coupled to the memory, wherein the processor, records a user viewing habit in a CPE, profiles the user based upon the recorded user viewing habit, uploads the superset of advertisements to a plurality of CPE's, detects an advertisement insertion signal in a data stream, and multiplexes the uploaded advertisement into the data stream upon detection of the advertising insertion signal based upon the user profile. The system processor may upload the superset of advertisements at a pre-determined time, delete the superset of advertisements at a pre-determined time and decrypt the data stream.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates a first system of CPE based advertisement insertion mechanism that includes an embodiment of the present invention as a portion thereof;

FIG. 2 illustrates a first method flow diagram listing the method steps of the method of operation of an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 illustrates a second method flow diagram listing the method steps of the method of operation of an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 illustrates a first software flow diagram of mass call defense in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5 illustrates a second software flow diagram of mass call defense in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6 illustrates a second system of CPE based advertisement insertion mechanism for internet protocol based networks in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 7 illustrates a third system of CPE based advertisement insertion mechanism for internet protocol based networks in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Referring now to FIG. 1, a first system of CPE based advertisement insertion mechanism for internet protocol based networks 110 is depicted and comprises a number of blocks or modules that are software, hardware, or firmware, and/or the combination of software, hardware, and/or firmware. The general flow is the client tunes to video 112, video is forwarded in either a multicast or unicast state 114, video is sent to TV 116, the viewing habits of the viewer are recorded 118 and profiled. The receiver then requests advertisements bases on the profile 120. The distributor matches the client profile with advertisements 122, the distributor schedules the advertisements 124 and the sender loads the advertisements 126, followed by the sender sending the ads 128. The receiver receives the ads 130 and stores the ads locally 132. The broadcaster signals the start of a commercial 134, the video is played with default ads if none are stored locally 136, otherwise ads are multiplexed into the data stream the video is forwarded 138 with the local ad inserted, the video is switched 140 to the local ad so that the play is transparent and the ad ends when the broadcaster signals 142 the end of the ad.

Referring now to FIG. 2, a first method of CPE based advertisement insertion mechanism for internet protocol based networks 210 is depicted and comprises a number of blocks or modules that are software, hardware, or firmware, and/or the combination of software, hardware, and/or firmware. A method for CPE based advertisement insertion mechanism for IP based networks, comprises, storing 212 advertisements in a CPE, detecting 214 an advertisement insertion signal in a data stream, and multiplexing 216 the stored advertisement into the data stream upon detection of the advertising insertion signal. The transfer of information between the modules occurs via at least one of: a wireless protocol, a wired protocol and a combination of the wireless protocol and the wired protocol.

Referring now to FIG. 3, a second method of CPE based advertisement insertion mechanism for internet protocol based networks 310 is depicted and comprises a number of blocks or modules that are software, hardware, or firmware, and/or the combination of software, hardware, and/or firmware. A method for CPE based advertisement insertion mechanism for Internet protocol based networks, comprises, storing 312 advertisements in a CPE, detecting 314 an advertisement insertion signal in a data stream, and multiplexing 316 the stored advertisement into the data stream upon detection of the advertising insertion signal. The method may also comprise recording 318 a user viewing habit, profiling 320 the user based upon the recorded user viewing habit, storing 322 the user profile and uploading 324 the advertisement to the CPE based upon the user profile. The method may additionally comprise requesting 326 the advertisement based upon the user profile, determining 328 the advertisement viewership and detecting 330 a channel change during the advertisement multiplexing. The method may comprise scheduling 332 the advertisement multiplexing based upon data stream and scheduling 334 the advertisement multiplexing based upon a time of viewing where the advertisement insertion signal is based upon SCTE 35 protocols. The transfer of information between the modules occurs via at least one of: a wireless protocol, a wired protocol and a combination of the wireless protocol and the wired protocol.

Referring now to FIG. 4, a first software flow block 410 of CPE based advertisement insertion mechanism for Internet protocol based networks is depicted. A computer readable medium comprises instructions for, recording 412 a user viewing habit in a CPE, profiling 414 the user based upon the recorded user viewing habit, matching 416 the user profile to an advertisement, and uploading 418 the advertisement to the CPE based upon the user profile. This method is preferably embodied in a computer readable medium or software but may also be embodied in firmware and is utilized via hardware. The transfer of information between the repository and the monitor occurs via at least one of a wireless protocol, a wired protocol and the combination of the wireless protocol and the wired protocol. The steps performed in this figure are performed by software, hardware, firmware, and/or the combination of software, hardware, and/or firmware.

Referring now to FIG. 5, a second software flow block 510 of CPE based advertisement insertion mechanism for Internet protocol based networks is depicted. A computer readable medium comprises instructions for, recording 512 a user viewing habit in a CPE, profiling 514 the user based upon the recorded user viewing habit, matching 516 the user profile to an advertisement, and uploading 518 the advertisement to the CPE based upon the user profile. The computer readable medium may comprise storing 520 the user profile, sending 522 a set of user preferences from the set top box to a broadband network, requesting 524 the advertisement based upon the user profile and scheduling 526 the advertisement uploads. This method is preferably embodied in a computer readable medium or software but may also be embodied in firmware and is utilized via hardware. The transfer of information between the repository and the monitor occurs via at least one of a wireless protocol, a wired protocol and the combination of the wireless protocol and the wired protocol. The steps performed in this figure are performed by software, hardware, firmware, and/or the combination of software, hardware, and/or firmware.

Referring now to FIG. 6, a first system 610 of CPE based advertisement insertion mechanism for Internet protocol based networks is depicted. A system of CPE based advertisement insertion mechanism for Internet protocol based networks, comprises, a memory 612 that receives 614 a superset of advertisements, and a processor 616 communicably coupled 618 to the memory. The processor, records 620 a user viewing habit in a CPE, profiles 622 the user based upon the recorded user viewing habit, uploads 624 the superset of advertisements to a plurality of CPE's, detects 626 an advertisement insertion signal in a data stream, and multiplexes 628 the uploaded advertisement into the data stream upon detection of the advertising insertion signal based upon the user profile. The superset of advertisements is broadcast to a profiled CPE device. The viewing habits of the household may determine which superset of advertisements the household receives, and determine which advertisements are spliced into the broadcast. When advertisement collections are broadcast, they may be broadcast at a low rate referred to as a trickle so as not to interfere with existing services. Additionally, due to the short duration of advertisements and large storage capacity in CPE devices, storage of a large number of advertisements is possible. In this embodiment, the advertisements stored on the devices would be periodically updated, deleted and refreshed. The transfer of information between the processor and the memory occurs via at least one of a wireless protocol, a wired protocol and a combination of a wireless protocol and a wired protocol. The steps performed in this figure are performed by software, hardware, firmware, and/or the combination of software, hardware, and/or firmware.

Referring now to FIG. 7, a second system 710 of CPE based advertisement insertion mechanism for internet protocol based networks is depicted. A system of CPE based advertisement insertion mechanism for Internet protocol based networks, comprises, a memory 712 that receives 714 a superset of advertisements, and a processor 716 communicably coupled 718 to the memory. The processor, records 720 a user viewing habit in a CPE, profiles 722 the user based upon the recorded user viewing habit, uploads 724 the superset of advertisements to a plurality of CPE's, detects 726 an advertisement insertion signal in a data stream, and multiplexes 728 the uploaded advertisement into the data stream upon detection of the advertising insertion signal based upon the user profile. The system processor may upload 730 the superset of advertisements occurs at a pre-determined time, delete 732 the superset of advertisements at a predetermined time and decrypt 734 the data stream. The superset of advertisements is broadcast to a profiled CPE device. The viewing habits of the household may determine which superset of advertisements the household receives, and determine which advertisements are spliced into the broadcast. When advertisement collections are broadcast, they may be broadcast at a low rate referred to as a trickle so as not to interfere with existing services. Additionally, due to the short duration of advertisements and large storage capacity in CPE devices, storage of a large number of advertisements is possible. In this embodiment, the advertisements stored on the devices would be periodically updated, deleted and refreshed. The transfer of information between the processor and the memory occurs via at least one of a wireless protocol, a wired protocol and a combination of a wireless protocol and a wired protocol. The steps performed in this figure are performed by software, hardware, firmware, and/or the combination of software, hardware, and/or firmware.

Although an exemplary embodiment of the system of the present invention has been illustrated in the accompanied drawings and described in the foregoing detailed description, it will be understood that the invention is not limited to the embodiments disclosed, but is capable of numerous rearrangements, modifications, and substitutions without departing from the spirit of the invention as set forth and defined by the following claims. For example, the capabilities of the invention can be performed fully and/or partially by one or more of the processors or memories. Also, these capabilities may be performed in the current manner or in a distributed manner and on, or via, any device able to provide and/or receive information. Further, although depicted in a particular manner, various modules or blocks may be repositioned without departing from the scope of the current invention. Still further, although depicted in a particular manner, a greater or lesser number of modules and connections can be utilized with the present invention in order to accomplish the present invention, to provide additional known features to the present invention, and/or to make the present invention more efficient. Also, the information sent between various modules can be sent between the modules via at least one of a data network, the Internet, an Internet Protocol network, a wireless source, and a wired source and via plurality of protocols. 

1. A method for a customer premises equipment based advertisement insertion mechanism for Internet protocol based networks, comprising: storing advertisements in a customer premises equipment; detecting an advertisement insertion signal in a data stream; and multiplexing the stored advertisements into the data stream upon the detecting of the advertisement insertion signal.
 2. The method of claim 1 comprising: recording a user viewing habit.
 3. The method of claim 2 comprising: profiling the user based upon the recorded user viewing habit.
 4. The method of claim 3 comprising: storing the user profile.
 5. The method of claim 3 wherein uploading the advertisement to the customer premises equipment based upon the user profile.
 6. The method of claim 3 comprising: requesting the advertisement based upon the user profile.
 7. The method of claim 1 comprising: determining the advertisement viewership.
 8. The method of claim 1 comprising: detecting a channel change during the advertisement multiplexing.
 9. The method of claim 1 comprising: scheduling the advertisement multiplexing based upon data stream.
 10. The method of claim 1 comprising: scheduling the advertisement multiplexing based upon a time of viewing.
 11. The method of claim 1 wherein: the advertisement insertion signal is based upon SCTE 35 protocols.
 12. A computer readable medium comprising instructions for: recording a user viewing habit in a customer premises equipment; profiling the user based upon the recorded user viewing habit; matching the user profile to an advertisement; and uploading the advertisement to the customer premises equipment based upon the user profile.
 13. The computer readable medium of claim 12 comprising: storing the user profile.
 14. The computer readable medium of claim 12 comprising: sending a set of user preferences from the set top box to a broadband network.
 15. The computer readable medium of claim 12 comprising: requesting the advertisement based upon the user profile.
 16. The computer readable medium of claim 12 comprising: scheduling the advertisement uploads.
 17. A system of customer premises equipment based advertisement insertion mechanism for Internet protocol based networks, comprising: a memory that receives an advertisement; and a processor communicably coupled to the memory, wherein the processor: records a user viewing habit in a customer premises equipment; profiles the user based upon the recorded user viewing habit; uploads a superset of advertisements to a plurality of customer premises equipment; detects an advertisement insertion signal in a data stream; and multiplexes the uploaded advertisement into the data stream upon detection of the advertisement insertion signal based upon the user profile.
 18. The system of claim 17 wherein the upload of the superset of advertisements occurs at a pre-determined time.
 19. The system of claim 17 wherein the processor deletes the superset of advertisements occurs at a pre-determined time.
 20. The system of claim 17 wherein the processor decrypts the data stream. 